174 MY LIFE 



root of the matter and see that the evil is in the very fact of 

 inheritance itself, are scouted as socialists or something worse. 

 The inability of ordinary political and social writers to follow 

 out a principle is well shown in this matter. It is only a few 

 years since Mr. Benjamin Kidd attracted much attention to 

 the principle of " equality of opportunity " as the true basis 

 of social reform, and many of the more advanced political 

 writers at once accepted it as a sound principle and one that 

 should be a guide for our future progress. Herbert Spencer, 

 too, in his volume on " Justice," lays down the same principle, 

 stating, as " the law of social justice " that " each individual 

 ought to receive the benefits and evils of his own nature and 

 consequent conduct; neither being prevented from having 

 whatever good his actions normally bring him, nor allowed to 

 shoulder off on to other persons whatever ill is brought to 

 him by his actions." This, too, has, so far as I am aware 

 never been criticised or objected to as unsound, and, in fact, 

 the arguments by which it is supported are unanswerable. 

 Yet no one among our politicians or ethical writers has openly 

 adopted these principles as a guide for conduct in legislation, 

 or has even seen to what they inevitably lead. Stranger still, 

 neither Mr. Kidd nor Herbert Spencer followed out their 

 own principle to its logical conclusion, which is, the absolute 

 condemnation of unequal inheritance. Herbert Spencer even 

 declares himself in favour of inheritance as a necessary 

 corollary of the right of property rightfully acquired ; and he 

 devotes a chapter to "The Rights of Gift and Bequest." 

 But he apparently did not see, and did not discuss the effect 

 of this in neutralizing his " law of social justice," which it 

 does absolutely. I have myself fully shown this in a chapter 

 on " True Individualism : the Essential Preliminary of a Real 

 Social Advance " in my " Studies Scientific and Social." 



It is in consequence of not going to the root of the matter, 

 and not following an admitted principle to its logical conclu- 

 sion, that the idea prevails that it is only the misuse of wealth 

 that produces evil results. But a little consideration will 

 show us that it is the inheritance of wealth that is wrong 

 in itself, and that it necessarily produces evil. For if it is 



